Washington – The newly independent state of East Timor has signed an agreement exempting US military personnel from prosecution in the International Criminal Court, the US State Department said on Monday.

The small east Asian country is only the third government to sign such a pact, known as an Article 98 agreement after part of the treaty that set up the court to try genocide and crimes against humanity. The others are Romania and Israel.

The United States has refused to cooperate with the new court on the grounds that its troops might face frivolous or politically motivated prosecutions. It is trying to persuade every country in the world, including its closest allies, to sign one of the Article 98 agreements.

The United States had two US soldiers in a UN force in East Timor but decided to withdraw them in July at the same time as the UN Security Council was debating the future of a UN peacekeeping mission in Bosnia. The gesture was widely interpreted as a US warning but US officials said it was not connected with the debate.

A State Department official said he was not sure if any US personnel were now part of the East Timor force. The government signed the agreement on Friday with US diplomats based in the capital Dili, he added.

The United States is now in conflict with the European Union over whether the 15-nation bloc should make a joint decision on Article 98 agreements or should leave it to each country to take up the US request.

US Secretary of State Colin Powell wrote to European governments on August 16 urging them to make up their own minds rather than wait for a European Union meeting this week.

A US official said last week that without Article 98 agreements with members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the United States might have to reconsider how it takes part in joint exercises or military operations.

But State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said on Monday: "The United States' commitment to NATO is very strong. It's a cornerstone of our security. There's no question of our commitment to NATO in terms of its role in enhancing our security and the security of all its members." He also denied that the United States would judge candidates for NATO membership on whether they sign agreements exempting US troops from prosecution in the court.

"But these things are important to us, Article 98 agreements, and we'll continue to pursue them strongly," the spokesman added.